


Cave of Origin

by magumarashi



Series: Hoenn Memories [7]
Category: Pocket Monsters: Ruby & Sapphire & Emerald | Pokemon Ruby Sapphire Emerald Versions
Genre: but since their relationship isnt the focus im not gonna tag it, laura and steven are together in this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-12
Updated: 2015-07-13
Packaged: 2019-01-30 03:47:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,187
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12645468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magumarashi/pseuds/magumarashi
Summary: In the aftermath of the ordeal at Sootopolis, Laura is left wondering what happened to the ancient Pokemon that disappeared into the Cave of Origin.





	1. Chapter 1

It took several days for Laura to completely recover from what had happened. Physically, she was fine–only the most minor cuts and scrapes remained from the ordeal–but it took her a while before she felt she was ready to leave the Pokémon Center. She’d been so fatigued the first day that she could barely get out of bed. On the second day she was accosted by reporters in the Pokémon Center lobby: they wanted to hear from the hero firsthand about her experience saving the world. Steven and the Pokémon Center staff managed to shoo them away, but they knew that Laura wouldn’t be able to leave the building without getting bombarded with questions.

By the end of the week, most of the reporters seemed to have given up. Laura and Steven went outside together, ready to wave off microphones and questions–but only one or two reporters remained, and they eyed the couple cautiously instead of approaching directly.

Laura took a look around. Just a week since the terrible battle, and things were already looking much better. Most of the debris had already been cleared, damaged houses were being repaired, and teams were working to bring the lake’s shores back to normal after Kyogre’s waves wiped them out. There was even a group rebuilding the wood structure over the Cave of Origin’s entrance.

“Has anyone seen Groudon…?” Laura asked, nodding toward the cave.

“Huh? I don’t think so,” said Steven. He followed her gaze, “That’s right, Groudon went in there, didn’t it… I don’t think it’s left the cave since.”

Laura couldn’t help but worry a little. If a week had gone by with no sign of it…

“Do you think it’s okay?”

“I bet it’s fine,” said Steven, “Wild Pokémon recover from battles naturally, like people recover from injuries.”

“But…” said Laura, “Kyogre had an advantage over it, and it really took a beating… it might be seriously hurt in there. We should do something to help.”

“Laura, Groudon’s a legendary Pokémon,” said Steven, “It’s much stronger than normal Pokémon. We should leave it alone so it can recover.”

“But what if it’s in pain?” said Laura, “The thought of Groudon all alone like that… I have to do something.”

“Laura…!”

But Laura was already off, dashing down the rocky steps to reach the shores of the lake. Her first stop would be the mart, to purchase as many berries as she could carry. Steven followed and grabbed her by the arm just as she was about to let Gorebyss out of its Pokéball.

“Laura, it’s too dangerous,” Steven warned, “Pokémon can be unpredictable when they’re hurt–who knows what Groudon might do? You could get killed…!”

“I’ll be fine,” said Laura, “Let me do this.”

Steven softened at the look on her face, and released her arm.

“Just… stay safe,” he said, “I almost lost you once already…”

“Everything’s under control,” said Laura, “I’m the hero, right?”

“If you say so…”

Laura let Gorebyss out of its Pokéball into the lake. The pink eel Pokémon shook itself a little in the water before looking to Laura for instructions. Laura put her shoes and socks in her bag and waded into the lake, taking hold of Gorebyss.

“Alright, Gorebyss, let’s get moving. We’ve got a Pokémon to find.”

* * *

Laura approached the entrance to the Cave of Origin toting an entire crate of Sitrus berries, with the pockets of her fanny pack bulging with even more. The construction workers looked up from their work as she approached. The old man from before had been supervising them, and he too turned to look at her.

“Just passing through,” said Laura, holding up the crate for them to see.

“Young lady,” the old man said, “The Cave of Origin is–!”

“Closed, I know,” she said, “But Groudon might be in there, and I’m worried about it.”

“Young lady–wait. You… you’re the Draconid girl who brought Rayquaza to save us, aren’t you?”

She nodded.

“I see… in that case, please excuse me. You have every right to set foot inside the Cave of Origin.”

The old man moved aside, letting Laura pass by. She walked under the scaffolding and into the cave, just as dark and foreboding as it had been before.

There were no earthquakes this time, nor did Pokémon try to get in her way. The Cave of Origin was eerily, stiflingly silent–it was as if the Pokémon that lived there were all in hiding, fearful of the legendary Pokémon resting deeper within. Laura didn’t know where Groudon would be, or how far she would have to go. As she descended, she noticed that the air inside the cave was beginning to get unbearably warmer. She had to stop several times and unzip her jacket, finally taking it off altogether and tying it around her waist.

She reached the deepest cavern after what seemed like an eternity. Instead of a candle lighting the room, the walls glowed with smears of molten rock. The rubies and sapphires growing from the walls sparkled in the soft orange light. Laura stepped carefully, avoiding pools of lava on the ground–each one the shape of a giant footprint.

At the center of the room there was an indentation that used to belong to a reflecting pool. The water had since evaporated, and now the depression was filled with bubbling lava. Standing in the shallow pool was a giant Pokémon, the markings on its body softly glowing blue as it slept. There could be no mistake–it was Groudon. Laura couldn’t tell how it was doing, but in the dim light, she thought she could make out several gashes in the plates on its back.

The Pokémon was facing away from her, but as she stepped on some particularly noisy gravel, it lifted its head and looked over its shoulder at her. Then it turned, slowly, sloshing molten lava as it moved. It brandished its claws and let out an angry roar.

“Easy, easy!” said Laura, “I brought you something to eat!”

Groudon roared again, and the ground shook violently beneath her. Laura dropped the crate, berries scattering, and ran away as fast as she could. Groudon attacked, sending a stream of flames racing after her. She scrambled around the corner just in time to avoid getting burnt to a crisp. The fire dissipated quickly, leaving only hot air behind. Laura took a moment to catch her breath, though she steeled herself for another attack. It never came. Groudon must have been satisfied just with a warning.

_Maybe Steven was right. This isn’t a good idea after all…_

Laura slid down the warm stone wall of the cave and sat down, burying her head between her knees.

_Me, the hero? No. That was–summoning Rayquaza was just luck. Rayquaza_ **_had_ ** _to answer me–I’m a ‘Draconid’ or whatever. Groudon owes me nothing, least of all its time. I should just forget it…_

The ground rumbled a little bit, and Laura looked up. She peered cautiously around the corner to see that Groudon had left the lava pool and was now sniffing at the spilled crate of berries. The continent Pokémon nibbled at a berry and, satisfied, devoured the whole thing in a single bite. It ate the rest of the berries almost greedily, smashing the crate as it went. Laura couldn’t help but smile to herself.

_You must have been hungry, huh…_

Having eaten all of the berries, Groudon retreated out of sight–it must have headed back into the lava pool to sleep off its meal. Laura stood, trying hard not to make a sound, and walked carefully back toward the cave entrance.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura returns to the Cave of Origin on a daily basis to care for Groudon.

She was back again the next day, crate of mixed berries in hand. The old man nodded to her on her way in, and the workers were making considerable progress on the cave entrance. Instead of cloth, this time the doors were to be made of thick wood–to prevent any gawkers and tourists from sneaking inside to see Groudon for themselves.

Word of last week’s events had already spread across the whole region, and people were already flooding to Sootopolis for a look. Laura’s name was all over the papers, even without her comments. Headlines like “Sixteen-Year-Old Saves Hoenn” and “Teen Trainer Thwarts Catastrophic Plot” lined the newsstand at the Pokémon Center. Laura knew she wouldn’t be able to escape the spotlight forever. She would have to give interviews, answer questions–she would have to come forward and talk about what had happened eventually. Though part of her looked forward to seeing her name everywhere, part of her dreaded it. This wasn’t what she wanted to be known for. Youngest Champion Ever–that was a title that appealed more to her. That was a feat that would impress someone like Terry. Hell, some part of her still felt that her role in the Sootopolis events had been a fluke. It was random. It was her ‘heritage’. It wasn’t something she’d worked all these years for, shed sweat and tears for–she’d just been in the right place at the right time.

She reached Groudon’s chamber and hesitated. What if it attacked her again? She steeled her nerves before entering, stepping past the sparkling gemstones and glowing lava pools. This time the continent Pokémon rested with its head towards her, and it opened its eyes as she approached. For a while the two of them eyed each other cautiously. Groudon lowered its head, but made no other signs of aggression.

“Well,” said Laura, “Here I am again. I brought you different berries this time, since you seemed to like the last ones…”

Laura tried to step closer, but Groudon let out a low growl, and she stopped. Groudon looked at the berries, then at her, then back to the berries. It growled again, this time somewhat impatiently. Laura understood. She set the crate down and picked out one of the larger berries: a fat, ripe, pink one with smooth skin. She gently set it on the ground and rolled it towards Groudon. The Pokémon moved one of its clawed hands to stop the berry, then bent down and ate it in a single bite. Laura couldn’t help but smile a little as she picked out a different berry. This one she held out in front of her.

“You gotta come get this one!” she said teasingly.

Groudon let out a roar, shaking the walls of the cave. A ruby nearby cracked in half and fell to the floor.

“Okay, nevermind!” Laura dropped the berry, “See you tomorrow!”

Laura almost tripped over herself running away, dreading the scalding flames that were sure to follow–but as she rounded the corner, she realized Groudon hadn’t attacked. She peered back around and watched as Groudon ambled towards the crate and began shoveling berries into its mouth. It looked up for a moment and took notice of her, but then went back to eating.

Smiling to herself, Laura left Groudon to its meal.

* * *

This continued for several days. Each day Laura was able to come a little closer–though not quite close enough for the Pokémon to eat out of her hand. She brought Groudon berries, cookies, even Pokeblocks that she furiously put together at the Sootopolis Contest Hall. She splurged a little on treats from foreign regions, and battled any trainer she could find to keep from going completely broke.

After about two weeks, Groudon allowed Laura to get close enough that she could get a good look at its wounds. The gashes Kyogre had left in its plate armor were deep, but seemed to be recovering little by little. She sprayed the ones she could reach with a potion for good measure, but Groudon barely seemed to feel it.

On the fourteenth straight day, Laura took a berry from her bag–she was no longer able to afford whole crates at a time–and held it up.

“Easy, easy…” she said. The Pokémon came right up to her, sniffing the berry cautiously. Its breath was hot and rancid on her face. Groudon opened its jaws, lined with sharp, interlocking teeth… and took the berry from her hand without even touching her. It swallowed the berry whole, then looked at her expectantly. Laura took off her bag and turned it upside down, letting the berries she’d stuffed in there scatter on the floor.

“That’s all I’ve got for you today,” she said, “Sorry…”

Laura took a seat on the ground, watching as Groudon bent down to eat. She rested her elbow on her knee, chin on her hand. She began to wonder how much longer she could afford to keep doing this before she’d have to start growing the berries herself. Groudon certainly seemed much perkier than before; it was awake more often than not when she came to visit. It was almost as though the Pokémon looked forward to their meetings, waiting eagerly for her to come by… Considering she’d been feeding it for the past two weeks, she wouldn’t have been surprised if that was the case.

“You’re doing a lot better…” Laura mused aloud, “Pretty soon you won’t need me anymore…”

Groudon looked up at her.

“It must have been really tough,” Laura continued, “Fighting Kyogre in the middle of the water, with rain pounding down. All the odds stacked against you, it seems like you can’t win…”

Groudon tilted its head to the side slightly.

“You really got the short end of the stick, what with a water-type rival and all.”

Laura looked down, drawing her knees close to her chest.

“I know how it feels to have a rival you just can’t beat, no matter how hard you try…” she admitted, “It sucks, doesn’t it? You give it your all, and they just… _destroy_ you…”

Her throat tightened.

“My rival’s off somewhere too,” she said, “Even if I wanted to show him how far I’ve come, he’s probably getting even better somewhere else. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to beat him…”

Laura smiled weakly.

“But I’ve got to try. I have to show him something he’s never seen–somehow…”

For a moment, Groudon was quiet. It bent its head and nudged one of the berries, sending it rolling in Laura’s direction to tap her foot gently. Groudon moved its head forward, urging her to pick it up.

“You want me to have this…?”

She picked up the berry cautiously. Groudon opened and closed its mouth several times, mimicking chewing, and nodded to her. Laura nodded back and bit into the berry–it was sweet, with a sour aftertaste. Groudon rumbled happily, pleased with itself. It watched as she ate the whole berry.

“… thanks, Groudon…” said Laura quietly. She smiled, even as tears welled up in her eyes, “Thanks for hearing me out. It’s nice to have someone who’ll just listen…”

The ground shook a little as Groudon stepped forward, leaving the lava pool and dripping molten rock as it went. Laura backed up a little, but Groudon took such large strides that she couldn’t get away fast enough. It raised one of its clawed hands and reached for her… only to pat her gently on the head. Its scaly skin was warm, even through her bandana.

Groudon returned its arm to its side and nodded to her, still rumbling softly. Laura stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes.

“I ought to get going…” she said, re-fastening her bag, “Got a lot to do still. So… see you tomorrow, Groudon.”

Laura headed for the exit, waving as she went–but the ground shook below her, and Laura realized she was being followed. She turned around to see Groudon close behind.

“Are you ready to leave the cave?” she asked. Groudon nodded, “Alright, then. We’ll go together.”

It was strange to walk alongside such a large Pokémon. Though its strides were long, its pace was slow. Laura had to walk more slowly than usual so she didn’t get too far ahead of it. As a result, it took much longer to reach the cave entrance than she was used to. The heavy doors had been completed long ago, and she’d left them slightly ajar so it would be easier for her to get back out. Even so, the doors were built so that a person could comfortably pass through–a Pokémon like Groudon wouldn’t fit. She looked at it worriedly.

“I don’t know if you’ll make it through…” she said, “You’re so tall…”

Groudon made a rumbling sound, eyeing the doors.

Suddenly, Laura had an idea.

“We can’t do anything about the doors, but… I might be able to make _you_ a little smaller.”

Groudon cocked its head. Laura reached into her bag, rifling through the Pokéball pocket before producing a purple and white one with an “M” engraved on the top. Even though she knew Groudon must have never seen one before, it seemed to understand what it was.

“You don’t have to stay in it forever,” she said, “Just until we’re on the other side, I promise.”

Groudon bent down and tapped the Master Ball with its snout. The ball opened, and the giant Pokémon was sucked inside. Unlike other Pokéballs, the Master Ball didn’t shake or show any signs of a struggle. The safety light went off immediately. Clutching the Master Ball tightly, Laura pulled the heavy door open and stepped into the sunlight.

The old man waited in his usual spot in the shade of the overhang they’d built over the door. She nodded to him as she pulled the door closed behind herself.

“How is Groudon?” he asked, “The ground was shaking earlier; I had worried something happened to you…”

“I’m fine,” said Laura, “And Groudon is…”

Laura allowed the Master Ball to open. Groudon appeared before her, shaking its head and blinking in the daylight. The old man gasped and stepped back, but Groudon didn’t even notice him.

“My stars…” said the old man, “You’ve tamed it…”

“You good, Groudon?” asked Laura. The giant Pokémon looked at her before lifting its head to the sky, letting out a joyful roar. The walls of Sootopolis trembled as the sound echoed between them.

“Well, you’re free,” said Laura, “Free and healthy. Go on… you can go back to Mt. Chimney now.”

Groudon looked back at her and shook its head vigorously. It turned around to face her, bending down to her level. Laura didn’t think she’d ever had the opportunity to look it directly in the eyes before. It moved just slightly, poking her stomach with its snout.

“You want to stay with me…?”

Groudon nodded, letting out a satisfied rumble. Laura could hardly believe it.

“Okay then,” she said, “Let’s go to the Pokémon Center. You can meet my other Pokémon, and Steven, and…”

Laura trailed off as her throat began to tighten again. She swallowed her tears and looked up with a smile.

“We’re going to go places, you and me. With you by my side… I can do anything. That’s how I feel.”


End file.
